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Wide receiver Antonio Brown (84) and quarterback Derek Carr (4) of the Oakland Raiders talk on the sidelines during the first half of the NFL preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Aug. 15, 2019, in Glendale, Arizona. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

ALAMEDA — With the Raiders canceling practice Saturday in favor of a walk-through, it’s a good sign they’re already making plans to host Denver on Sept. 9.

Most of the heavy lifting in terms of who will be on the roster is complete, with the final three practices and Thursday night’s exhibition finale in Seattle mere formalities.

Perfect time to get to some mailbag questions:

Without Antonio Brown playing in the preseason or with very little practice, do you think Carr and him will still be on point with just off the field workouts? (Nicoq45 email)

It won’t be as good as if Brown were practicing. The goal for Jon Gruden will be to determine which plays Carr and Brown are executing the best, and make sure those are prominent in the Denver game plan. The two can rebuild their chemistry as they go along.

Does Doug Martin make the team? (Lee Tracy email)

A good rule of thumb in the exhibition season is running backs who get a lot of work usually don’t make the team, and those who sit and watch are being saved for the regular season. Martin has carried twice. James Butler and Mack Brown have combined for 58 carries. Easy to watch on TV and think either of those two could slide in for Martin. But if you’re a coach, you go with legit game experience.

Native of Canada following up on the heels of the 80 Yard Field game. For us at home, we get to see Clelin Ferrell from afar. Yes, the reports seem like he has a great motor but after training camp and 3 pre-season games, what is your honest assessment of him? Seven sacks for him. You taking the over or under? (Ryan J. Sidhoo email)

It looks like Ferrell is pretty much what the Raiders expected. A sound, mature player with the ability to hold an edge and do some damage rushing the passer. I do think the Raiders would like him a little bigger, and we’ll see how well he holds that edge against tackles who outweigh him by 50-plus pounds. Seven sacks looks like the perfect number. I’d call it push.

Haven’t heard much about Mayowa, Jerry. How’s it looking for him? (@GarySternNY)

With Clelin Ferrell, Josh Mauro, Arden Key and Maxx Crosby as locks, Benson Mayowa could go either way. For instance, do the Raiders see enough in Quinton Bell to put him on the 53-man roster, or let the converted receiver try smooth out his skill set on the practice squad? I’d say the latter.

Gruden got a 1000yard season out of Brown and Rice in 2000. You think Brown and Williams duplicate that? (@81CaffeyVet)

Possible, but two things stand in the way: 1) Jon Gruden loves running the ball between the tackles as a tone-setter for toughness. When the Raiders had their best offense under Gruden in 2000, they led the league in rushing. That takes away from passing yardage; 2) For optimal effectiveness, Antonio Brown is going to need the bulk of the targets. If you’re going to bring him in, then get 1,300 yards out of him. And you won’t hear a peep of complaint out of Tyrell Williams if his yardage is in the 850-950 range with a decent per-reception average of 16.0 or better.

Will Morrow be a 3 down LB? He looks like he’s up for it. (@MichaelG37x)

Nicholas Morrow (50) has had a solid camp at outside linebacker.

Saw Nicholas Morrow do some work against the run and in a blitz situation that I haven’t seen before. He’s always been extremely athletic, with the ability to do some good work in coverage. But while the skill set is there as a three-down linebacker, I think they’re going to want to have Vontaze Burfict and Tahir Whitehead on the field more often than Morrow.

At this point, Anthony Rush appears to have played his way on to the 53-man roster. I’d have to agree with fellow beat writer Vic Tafur that veteran Justin “Jelly” Ellis is at risk. That would leave just Derek Carr and Gabe Jackson from Reggie McKenzie’s best draft class in 2014.

What’s up w Gabe. Surgery or rehab? (@_SomeBodyNoBody)

No surgery. He is in a rehab mode. But rehabbing a knee with a 335-pound torso can take some time. He’ll miss at least a quarter of the season. The question is whether the Raiders put him on the 53-man roster, then put Jackson on injured reserve and bring someone else back that got cut. It gets them another body and Jackson more time to be healthy. But he’d miss at least half the season.

Has the Raiders pass rush improved? Do they have a position of depth/strength on defense? (Willie Dawson email)

After 13 sacks last season, they’re starting at Ground Zero. It has to be better because it’s not possible to be worse. I’d be surprised if the Raiders had any player with double digit sacks. But if they can get in the six to eight range from Clelin Ferrell, Arden Key and Maxx Crosby, that’s a huge upgrade from the edge. Throw in a better interior push, plus the occasional blitz (watch out for Johnathan Abram) and they could get to over 30 in a hurry. Not incredible, but a big improvement. I see better depth in the defensive backfield than I have in years.

Keep hearing talk about Grant or Nelson possibly being the odd men out, we really going to let them walk? (@BPowNYC)

You can’t keep everybody. Antonio Brown, Tyrell Williams and Hunter Renfrow are carved in stone, with Dwayne Harris occupying a spot on special teams. J.J. Nelson and Ryan Grant have both had their moments, although Nelson has been hurt of late. That’s always a sticking point with Gruden. Availability. Grant is interesting because like Renfrow, he does his best work out of the slot. Could see Raiders trying to land a conditional draft pick for either one. But when it gets down to it, most teams are reluctant to even give up that much for a player they think may become available for nothing in return.

Do the Raiders seem to have a lot more of the It factor this year than last year? And do you believe that Gruden’s office was so complex for Derek and any QB that he really didn’t understand it enough to handle it? (@Fredd_enri)

There’s a reason why you never see Jon Gruden opening a season with rookie quarterbacks (and why the whole Kyler Murray-Dwayne Haskins buzz was laughable). And as Carr learned, memorizing something and being able to repeat it is not the same thing as truly knowing it and understanding it. He should be much better in that regard in Year 2. To say he couldn’t handle it last year is an incorrect. He completed nearly 70 percent of his passes and seemed to grow within the system as the year progressed.

What happens to Eddy V ? (@Jack97041358)

Eddy Vanderdoes through no fault of his own, simply hasn’t been on the field enough after playing extensively as a rookie. As stated before, availability is huge with Gruden.

Do you think Karl Joseph will be traded at some point during the season? We all know With the exception of Carr, Gruden wants his guys. (Adam Flores email)

Got to admit I’m really intrigued to see how the height-challenged back end (6-foot Johnathan Abram, 5-10 Karl Joseph, 5-8 Lamarcus Joyner in the slot) handles the 6-foot-4 tight ends that will challenge them on the weekly basis. I think Gruden had mixed feelings on Joseph for much of last season, but was won over in the end — especially the Week 16 win against Denver. In-season trades aren’t that common. If it were to happen, it wouldn’t bode well because it would indicate the Raiders were selling players off and their win-loss record wasn’t good.

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